Live Music Now

These are the 9 best concerts to catch in Houston this week

Don't say we didn't warn you. Lauryn Hill postponed her scheduled set at Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land on September 29; the award-winning singer came down with cold. The show is now scheduled for May 9, 2019. Killing me softly, indeed.

In other music related news, Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh apparently instigated an altercation after a UB40 concert back in 1985. (Serious question: Who gets into a fight over UB40? Too much red, red wine perhaps?)

Hopefully, the following shows will go on as scheduled without a postponement or FBI investigation. Here are CultureMap's best and biggest shows of the week.

Goo Goo Dolls celebrate the '90s
Get ready to slow dance awkwardly with your high school crush. There once was a time when the Goo Goo Dolls was one of the biggest bands in the country. Starting off as a power-pop trio led by lead singer, Johnny Rzeznik, the group hit it big with the acoustic ballad, “Name” in 1995, on the otherwise straight-ahead alt-rock album, A Boy Named Goo. The New York band hit it even bigger with “Iris” a few years later, a song played at every prom across America. The group is playing the corresponding album, Dizzy up the Girl, in full on its current U.S. tour.

Goo Goo Dolls play Dizzy up the Girl in its entirety at House of Blues, located at 1204 Caroline St., on Tuesday, October 2. Tickets start at $49.50 plus service fees. Doors open at 7 pm.

CultureMap free show of the week: The Tontons and Say Girl Say
Two of the best Houston acts come together for a free concert at Discovery Green this Thursday, in what is the best happy hour option of the week. Word is The Tontons, with their catchy-as-hell Smiths-esque sound, are in the studio finally working on a long-awaited follow-up to 2014's Make Out Stories and Other Stories of Love. Hallelujah. The mystical duo Say Girl Say is due to drop their second album soon. Here's hoping we'll get to hear some new tunes at this show.

The Tontons appear at the Thursday Concert Series at Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney St. Say Girl Say opens. Admission is free. Show starts at 7 pm.

J Balvin returns
After scoring one of the highest attended concerts at RodeoHouston earlier this year, reggaeton performer J Balvin (born José Álvaro Osorio Balvin) is back, playing a far more intimate show at the Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land. His appearance couldn't have come a hotter time for the Latin pop star, having just scored a No. 1 single with the Cardi B track, "I Like It." His latest album, Vibras, recently gave him his highest chart placement, coming in at No. 15 on the Billboard charts. Expect a packed, energetic crowd for this one.

J Balvin performs at the Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land, located at 18111 Lexington Blvd. in Sugar Land, on Thursday, October 4. Tickets start at $39.95 plus service charges. Show starts at 8 pm.

"Dancing Queen," Houston Symphony style
Is ABBA cool? One could argue that if you have to ask, probably not, but there's no denying the pure melodic brilliance of the Swedish quartet that produced some of the catchiest earworms in the history of pop music, so much that a massive Broadway play and two Hollywood hit films came from their songs. "Dancing Queen," "Mamma Mia," "Waterloo," "Take a Chance on Me," "S.O.S." and many more will be highlights when the Houston Symphony covers the jammed catalog of hits along with vocal group, Rajaton, this weekend at Jones Hall.

The Music of Abba will be performed by the Houston Symphony at Jones Hall, located at 615 Louisiana St., on Friday, October 5, Saturday, October 6, and Sunday, October 7. Tickets start at $59 plus service fees. Shows on Friday and Saturday start at 8 pm, Sunday at 7:30 pm.

CultureMap recommends: Buzzy Bishop Briggs at House of Blues
Fans of Imagine Dragons and girl power will want to check out Bishop Briggs, the 26-year-old, British alt-rock singer-songwriter who is blowing up the airwaves and racking up YouTube views as of late with her song, "The River." She has toured with Coldplay, appeared on American Idol, and is becoming a mainstay at international festivals for her in-your-face lyrics and powerful voice. Fans of INXS will want to check out her cover of "Never Tear Us Apart." She's touring behind her new album, Church of Scars.

Bishop Briggs is at House of Blues, located at 1204 Caroline St., on Saturday, October 6. Tickets start at $25 plus service fees. Doors open at 7 pm.

Hometown heroes: Wild Moccasins and Vodi
After teaming up at the Bands for Beto event at Warehouse Live in August, local acts Wild Moccasins and Vodi join forces once again at the Satellite Bar for full sets. Wild Moccasins are riding high following their summer release of their new album, Look Together, and Vodi is still working behind one of last year's bests, Talk. The much talked about John Allen Stephens, producer for The Suffers' Everything Here, will open. Hit this show to celebrate how strong the Houston music scene is right now.

Wild Moccasins headline Satellite Bar, located at 6922 Harrisburg Blvd., on Saturday, October 6. Vodi and John Allen Stephens open. Tickets start at $12 plus service charges. Doors open at 7 pm.

No. 1 Brockhampton at Revention
It's been a good week for Brockhampton, as the 14-member rap collective just hit No. 1 on the chart for its new album, Iridescence. Now based in L.A., the self-described boy band — think Wu-Tang crossed with N'Sync — just signed a $15 million record deal with music giant RCA after releasing earlier albums independently with smooth beats, and a fresh-faced, modern perspective. Not too shabby for a group that started off in San Marcos, Texas, with many members having ties to Houston.

Brockhampton performs at Revention Music Center, located at 520 Texas Ave., on Sunday, October 7. Tickets start at $35 plus service fees. Doors open at 8 pm.

Sebastian Bach at White Oak
Oh the '80s, when dudes with long hair, a can of hairspray, a makeup kit, and lots of leather could be rock stars. Count Sebastian Bach as one of those rock stars, the front man for Skid Row, which scored hits with "18 and Life," "I Remember You," and "Youth Gone Wild." Bach has maintained a profile in music, but is probably mostly remembered by this generation for his turn as an actor on smart teen drama, Gilmore Girls. For diehards, or fans of the classic show, Bach is back, playing the nostalgia circuit covering his Skid Row and solo hits.

Sebastien Bach headlines the White Oak Music Hall, located at 2915 N. Main St., on Sunday, October 7. One Bad Son and Monte Pittman opens. Tickets start at $20 plus a $8.63 service fee. Doors open at 7 pm.

CultureMap show of the week: Bands for Beto 2.0
Just like the August rally, put politics aside, and the latest gathering for U.S. Senate hopeful Beto O'Rourke is one heckuva music line-up. The Beto Voter Registration Rally will be hosted by H-town legends, hip-hop star Bun B and former Texans running back Arian Foster. In addition, you'll get performances from alt-folk crooner Shakey Graves, alt-rockers The Tontons, rapper Willie D, and Latin act Bombon. In other words, there's something for everyone. (Unless you're a Ted Cruz fan, that is.)

The Beto Voter Registration Rally goes down at White Oak Music Hall, located at 2915 N. Main St., on Monday, October 8. Bun B, Shakey Graves, Willie D, The Tontons, and Bombon will perform. RSVP required. $25 donation is suggested. Doors open at 6:30 pm.

Wild Moccasins play the Satellite Bar on Saturday, October 6.

Arturo Olmos

Wild Moccasins play the Satellite Bar on Saturday, October 6.

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Movie Review

Summer camp drama The Plague proves middle school is still pure horror

Photo courtesy of IFC

Everett Blunck in The Plague.

Anybody who’s attended elementary school in the last 100 years knows the concept of “cooties,” a fictional affliction that is typically caught when touched by a member of the opposite sex. A more updated version of the same idea is featured in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, this time called the “Cheese Touch,” making anyone who touches a moldy piece of cheese on the school’s basketball court an outcast.

A much more menacing version of this “disease” is on display in The Plague, which takes place at a summer water polo camp for tweens. The film focuses on Ben (Everett Blunck), a slightly awkward boy who struggles to fit in with the “cool” crowd led by Jake (Kayo Martin). That group has no problems making fun of others that they deem to be different, especially Eli (Kenny Rasmussen), who has been ostracized because of a rash he has that the kids call “the plague.”

Ben wants to be part of the main group, but his natural empathy leads him to reach out to Eli on more than one occasion despite Eli engaging in some uncomfortable behavior. With the camp’s coach (Joel Edgerton) not much help when it comes to the bullying tactics by Jake and others, especially those that take place at night, Ben is left to fend for himself. His vacillations between wanting to be accepted and wanting to do what’s right continue until his hand is forced.

Written and directed by first-time feature filmmaker Charlie Polinger, the film has all the feel of a horror movie without actually being a horror. The staging used by Polinger gives the film a claustrophobic feel as Ben can’t seem to escape the psychological torture inflicted by Jake and others no matter where he goes. He also employs a jarring score by Johan Lenox to great effect, one that’s designed to keep viewers on edge even when nothing bad is happening.

No matter how far removed you are from middle school, the film will likely bring up feelings you thought you had left behind. Much like with Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade, Polinger finds a way to tap into something universal in his depiction of tweens, an age when everyone is still discovering who they really are. Some go along to get along, others don’t even attempt to fit in, but no one truly feels settled.

Whether the plague is real or not in the world of the film is up for debate. While most of the time it comes off as something made up to underscore the feeling of otherness felt by Ben, Polinger does literalize it to a degree. He even tiptoes up to the line of body horror before wisely retreating, although what he does show will still make some viewers squeamish. However, because he seems to be leaning one way before pulling back, there’s the possibility that some will be disappointed by the tease of something more intense.

The film’s biggest success is in its casting. Finding good child actors is notoriously tough, and yet Polinger and casting director Rebecca Dealy found a bunch who sell the story for all it’s worth. Blunck, Martin, and Rasmussen get the most play, but everyone else complements them well. Edgerton is the only well-known actor in the film, but he’s used sparingly and isn’t asked to do much, leaving the kids to carry the story on their shoulders.

Fitting in as a tween is hard enough without others actively trying to find ways to cast someone out. The Plague is an effective demonstration of the dynamics that can play out in a competitive environment that also includes a group that has yet to develop into fully-rounded people. It features discomfort on multiple levels, marking an auspicious debut for Polinger.

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The Plague is now playing in theaters.

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